Blue
by Cloud Streak
Summary: Is Kisame evil? Or just misunderstood? Becuase the is a difference. Disclaimer: I dont' own Naruto. Deathfic. I won't continue until I get more then 6 reviews, so if you really care that much, REVIEW!, and if not then I'm happy leaving it where it is.
1. A Change in Plan

"The rain," Kisame breathed slowly, "it's coming down hard." Deidara did not answer preferring to stare off into space, consumed by his thoughts.

_"Tomorrow," Pain had told them, "tomorrow, you will get the boy." Kisame hoped they caught him, he hoped it more then anything._

"Pain won't let you go, just because you catch the Jinchuriki." Deidara warned him. They took a step back as the downpour extended a foot farther into the small cave, blown by the raging wind. Kisame didn't respond.

"Then I'll go on my own."

Deidara's eyes slanted lazily over to his tall accomplice. "Fool. You're not even as strong as me, and I could never hope to defeat the leader." Kisame could find no answer.

"I don't care if it costs be my life," Kisame spat, "I'll butcher the leader into a million pieces to save _him_."

Deidara snapped out of his lazy doze as small paper butterfly burst from the shadows of the cave and flew into the storm, unfazed by the tempest outside.

"SHIT!" Deidara shrieked. "After freaking Konan tattles, we'll both be dead!"

Kisame looked around, frightened. "How the hell did they know where we were?"

"A reliable source," answered a voice in the depths of the cave. And out of the murky darkness engulfing most of the shelter came none other then the prodigy himself. Uchiha Itachi.

"Bastard!" growled Deidara. He lunged angrily at Itachi, but stopped in an instant.

"What the-" Kisame began, but it several seconds Deidara collapsed on the floor, grasping his heart as if he thought somebody was about to rip it out. Kisame had no clue how right he was.

Itachi's Sharingan faded back to normal, black eyes. He nodded curtly, and vanished out of thin air.

Deidara was still shaking on the floor. Kisame helped him up. "He was holding it…while…blood…pumping…I…I…" but it was no use. Deidara had fainted. Kisame nervously bumped his body with the hilt of his giant blade. _Out cold, for sure. _

Kisame was about to start to tend to him when he dreadfully felt that familiar feeling. That he was being tickled apart into tiny particles. That he very being was materializing. Soon, he was standing in the Akatsuki base, a static figure.

"Yes…master?" Kisame asked nervously. Pain was standing with his arms folded, scowling. Konan stood to his right, Zetsu to his left. All the other teams were out on there respective missions. The way Pain frowned was extremely unnerving. He never showed his teeth, barely opening his mouth to speak. At least Sasori smirked when he screwed with you.

"It has come to my attention," Pain began, "that you would like to join me in combat."

"Master, I can assure you," Kisame put out frantically, "I had no intention of-"

"Whether you planned to try or not is not of importance. You spoke it, and that is enough for me. So…" he stretched his arms out wide, "try."

Kisame noticed that the static feeling was gone. He was there, in the light-blue flesh. "How the-" Pain didn't smile, but there was a gleam of triumph in his eyes.

"Try." He repeated.

"Try what?"

"To butcher me into a million pieces, of course."

Kisame broke into a cold sweat. "I won't master, I just won-"

"Would you rather…I make the first move?" Pain stared blankly at the shark-like figure. Silence. "Very well then."

Pain snapped his fingers. Kisame's torso was ripped open. He bellowed in agony, dropping his sword. Pain snapped them again, and the veins in the open torso could be seen constricting his heart, like a hungry snake.

Kisame's eyes were bulging out of his head. "Stop! Please! I'm begging master! STOP!"

And to his surprise, his veins went slack, and his torso sewed itself back together. Pain crossed his arms again. "You have learned your lesson?" he asked politely but firmly.

"Yes, master! Yes, of course!"

"Then you won't mind me changing your mission?"

Kisame gulped. This mission was his only chance to find him. To save him. To repay him for what he had done. But as Pain's eyes burrowed skeptically into his mind, he saw that he had no choice. "Yes, of course, master."

"Good," purred Zetsu. He took a small blue scroll out of his robe, and handed it to Tobi, who had burst from the ground beside him. Tobi hurried over to Kisame and thrust it into his hand, tripping several times before he got there.

"You're new mission," Pain began, "is to find a new member. Kakuzu has…disposed…of yet another."

Deidara was ushered into the base by Itachi and Sasori, and thrown on the ground next to Kisame, with a loud crunch.

"But let me warn you," drawled Pain, "if you fail this mission, if you choose to save _him_ instead of remaining loyal to the Akatsuki…" And for once in a very long time, Pain smiled. Kisame was horrified.

Kisame waited until Pain was escorted away by Zetsu and Konan and Tobi and tunneled away before moving. He slowly helped a still shaking Deidara up. Itachi and Sasori stood watching. Sasori was smirking arrogantly.

"This was all your fault!" Deidara spat at Itachi. Kisame was impressed he was brave enough to do this, after his recent encounter. The Uchiha's eyes remained normal, though.

"It was my mission to make sure the two rookies were loyal. I assure you Tobi passed the very same inspection. Surprising, seeing as he isn't even a member." Itachi said quietly. "Otherwise, I could really care less what your trivial goals are."

"Maybe you should give that cloak to Tobi," Sasori chuckled at Deidara.

"Maybe you should shut the hell up!" Deidara shrieked. Kisame flinched again, half expecting Sasori to attack his partner. But instead, he stayed stationary, his red hair blowing lightly in the breeze.

"You will learn, over time," Sasori said, "that all the things that have happened so far in your lives, all the people you wish you could kill, the ones you wish you could have back just for one second, to savor their love for another instant, does not matter. Your life now belongs to the leader. It belongs to Akatsuki."

"No," Kisame said, suddenly. "You could never understand. Maybe you were willing to kill your family, but I say no. I loved my family, and I'm not afraid to admit it, Akatsuki member or not." Sasori didn't respond.

"How could you ever understand how it is to lose the person you cherish more then your own life?" Kisame continued. "My little brother was my life! If you had a little brother, you'd probably butcher him!"

A particularly loud blast of thunder pierced the normally sound proof walls of the hideout. And Itachi's eye locked onto Kisame's. Was that pity in the dark eyes? Or just hatred? Kisame couldn't tell.

"It is of no importance," Sasori muttered, unfazed by the words he had just received. "I learned long ago that family wasn't a gift. Parents, siblings, grandma's, they're there for one reason: to test you. I saw through the test, and passed with flying colors. Meanwhile, some fools find it necessary to wade through life, being slowly sucked down by family ties. There's only one way to truly succeed: alone." Sasori turned on his heel and slowly walked away, into the deep maze of caverns that made up the back of the hideout. Itachi followed.

"Well," said Kisame, turning slowly to Deidara, "Let's see what this "mission" is all about."


	2. A Letter, a Mission, and a Dream

Somewhere deep in the forest, Kisame and Deidara were huddled together under a giant pine tree, a natural umbrella to the raging storm. Deidara had started a tiny fire, which cast long shadows all about.

Kisame drew the blue scroll from his cloak, and set it gently on the floor of crisp brown needles.

"Open it," Deidara quietly breathed. Kisame tentatively unrolled the smooth, cool paper. It lay calmly on the ground, the long boughs of the tree protecting it from the wind and rain. The fire cast a small glow, illuminating the message.

A large picture was near the top of the scroll, an ancient pyramid made of mossy, cracked stone. It was not a triangular pyramid, but one of more Mayan architecture. It seemed to be surrounded by torches and large, tropical trees.

"The Temple of Jashin," Kisame read out loud from the scroll, "is located in the most deep jungles of the Land of Wind, far south of the deserts of Sunagakure."

"Although none have directly seen the area that the ancient village of Jashin is rumored to rest in, rumors swirl around the mysterious place," Deidara continued. "Legend says that the worshipers of this ancient religion have discovered the secret to defeating the most powerful enemy of all: death. The area is near impossible to reach, however, as it is surrounded by miles of undisturbed jungles, with dangers of unknown levels lurking in its shadows. This picture was found in the coffin of an ancient ninja warlord. He seems to have been pushed out to sea in his coffin from the Country of Wind and landed in the Country of Fire. The corpse seemed to have been stabbed through the heart, yet there were no particles of any metal of any kind deposited in the wound. It is as if he had been stabbed by thin air itself."

"How is this a mission?" Deidara snapped. "It sounds like some bullshit old wives tale to me."

"I think the leader means for us to go to this "Jashin" and recruit a new member from it."

"I think the leader is off his rocker, " Deidara muttered. A small paper butterfly exploded out of the bark of the tree, and went to escape into the night.

"Not this time!" Deidara shouted. He whipped a kunai at the butterfly, pinning it to the ground. Reaching into his bag, he pulled out a firm hand –full of clay, and let his hands chew it thoroughly. Then, he stuck the clay onto the wing of the writhing paper insect. "This time, I'll teach Konan," he muttered, "that art," He brought his hands together in a seal, "is a blast!"

"KATSU!" he bellowed, cackling as the spy was incinerated in a mini explosion of cinder and parchment.

That night, Kisame pulled a small piece of parchment out of his cloak, along with an old, scratchy pen and a dusty bottle of ink. His letter was brief yet precise:

_Momochi Zabuza,_

_You are forgiven. Let no harm come to the boy. Keep the act though, for he is smart enough to see through the slightest mistakes. And at all costs, kill the Uchiha. Keep the Jinchuriki_ **alive**!

_Best of Luck,_

_Hoshigaki Kisame_

Kisame put down the quill and curled up the letter. He nudged Deidara, who was snoring loudly.

"Wasa madder?" he asked groggily.

"I need one of your clay birds to run a message for me."

"Screw off."

"Please!"

"SCREW OFF!"

"Deidara!"

"Urgh!!!!!" Deidara rolled over (very grumpily) and made a small clay falcon in a matter of seconds. And within a minute, he'd promptly rolled over and continued whatever dream he was having.

Kisame hastily tied the letter onto the clay bird, which flew off into the electrical storm. Kisame just hoped it wouldn't vaporize when water touched it. Soon, the loud rumblings of the thunder and the soft crackle of the fire began to sing a lullaby, and the blue ninja slowly drifted off.

"_NO! Please, please stop!" It was raining in the narrow alleyway. __Kirigakure was the location, it seemed. The Hidden Mist Village. _

"_Heh heh, what a little worm you are!" a gruff voice laughed. The tall, man was blue, looking more like a fish then a man. He had the short girl pinned to the wall, and smiled grimly as the rain poured down her face. _

"_Let go!" she shrieked. Her dark-blue hair and deep black eyes made her extremely attrative, even though she was only fourteen. "Go away, you fishy bastard!"_

"_Ohoho!" bellowed the man cheeringly. "It's a good thing you're pretty bitch, a good thing." And he began to unfasten his belt. _

"_No!" she shreiked. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_

Kisame woke with a start. He noticed he was crying, and with good reason She had died so long ago, his mother had. This was no dream eihter. This had been a vision from the past. He'd bet his gills on it.

"He…_he…was my father?"_ he asked himself. Well, he _was _the only other blue person Kisame had ever seen, dream or no. But before he could further ponder the subject, Deidara had woken up. Kisame assumed it was day, but the still present clouds dumpoing rain down made it impossible to be sure as they covered the land in an eternal night.

"Let's go, man," Deidara muttered, putting on his hat to protect his face from the rain. Kisame donned his as well. They had both cut the bells off their hats, finding the constant jingling extremely annoying.

"We should hed southwest," Kisame said, and so they began their slow walk towards the Country of Wind.


	3. The Artist Enters

The fisrt day was extremely quiet. Kisame thought about the dream he had just witnessed, and Deidara just stared blankly fowar, also lost in his own thoughts.

Deidara. Kisame didn't know hat much about him. He had been paired with Deidara the day they had found him. He had been sent to go with Itachi and Sasori, as he did not yet have a partner.

They had found him in a small art gallery, filled with old Japanse artifacts.

"_You!" Sasori had barked. He was inside that damn puppet. "Have you any intrest in joining our group?" Kisame had thought this offer had seemed incredibly casual, like a simple gathering of school-boys recruting a team to play tag with. _

_"What group?" deidara had laughed, "All I see is three idiot in freak clothes." _

_"Akatsuki." Itachi muttered quietly, ignoring the crack at his outfit._

_"Akatsuki?" Deidara snapped. "What the hell's that? Buzz off, I'm trying to take in the art here!"_

_"Why do I have to get stuck with this kid?" Sasori muttered so Deidara coulnd't hear. "He's got spunk, but he's definetly gonna die on us."_

_"Relax," answered Itachi. "Once he has joined and back at the base, he will be paired with Kisame and out of your hair."_

_"You mean if he joins," corrected Kisame._

_Oh, he will join," spat Sasori, "whether he wants to or not." _

_"Why's he so important anyway?" Kisame asked. _

_"Who knows?" Sasori grumbled._

_"It doesn't matter. Leader's orders. His abilities will be useful to us."_

_"Useful!" shouted Diedara. "Hey, wait, my abilities? You know about me? Who the hell are you people!"_

_"You've been cooperating with insurgents in the surrounding countries, acting as a terrorist and causing damging expolsions." Kisame was impressed he had remebered the whole remort, his memory was usually horrible. _

_"What purpose," he continued, "are you trying to achieve, now that you've left your village?" _

_"Purpose?" Deidara asked. He seemed almost intrested in these 'idiots in freak clothes'. "Don't have one. People hire me to blow things up, and I fufill their requests.With my sculptures, hmm."_

_"Glad to see the leaders got his eyes on a smart one," Itachi mumbled sarcastically under his breath. Kisame grinned. Jokes were rare from Itachi._

_"Sculptures?" asked Sasori, trying to fake intrest as to keep their future member happy._

_"BEHOLD!" annouced Deidara, and a large clay spider seemed to appear out of thin air on his palm. "This is true art!" he called, while the spider skittered around his hand. "But that's just the beginning! Though they start out as models, my art lives! My art breathes! Hmm!"_

_"Nutjob," commented Sasori so the 'artist' couldn't hear. _

_"MY ART EXPLODES!" The spider began to dance around Deidara's plam in a mad fashion. "And in that short moment, it fufills the vision of greatness that inspired me to shape it! That explosive instant is the only point where I consider it to be true art! Because art is a bang!"_

_"Man," Sasori said "he's annoying."_

_"Are you finsihed?" asked Kisame politely. _

_"All right," Itachi muttered, closing his eyes, "that's enough, I'll fight him." His eyes snapped open, revelaing his Sharingan. _

_"Who said anything about fighting?" Sasori asked._

_"I have no desire to stand here being lectured about arts all day, so I'll make this much quicker," he answered._

_"Hey!" Deidara shouted defensively. "What's with his eyes! You wanna fight!"_

_"If I win," Itachi said, "you must join Akatsuki." _

_Diedara chuckeled as he agreed. He had no intention of joing Akatskui that day. "Don't you ever underestimate my art! My ninjustsu is the very essence of my creativity, hmm!"_

_He threw another fat spider at Itachi, who jumped back. "KATSU!" Deidara roared making a hand-symbol. The soider exploded, but Itachi miraculously dodged it. Deidara's grin was huge now, as a giant clay centipede burst from the floor and constricted Itachi tightly._

"_Incredible," Kisame had breathed in awe._

"_Hardly," drwaled Sasori. "Any idiot could have seen that he slipped that thing into the groundas he threw the spider. You'd have to be blind not to see that!" Kisame decided he must be pretty damn close to being blind. _

"_That all you got?" Deidara taunted. "You're finshed, hmm!" He raised his hands to signal the clay to explode._

_A rare grin dance over Itachi's face. "You'd bettertake a look at yourself, first," he cautioned. Deidara let out a cry as he looked down. An identical cenitpede had constricted him as well._

"_That was close," Kisame told to his new partner, "another second and you'd have gone from artist to suicide bomber."_

"_I told you that he'd die on us," Sasori sighed._

"_Genjutsu!" spat Deidara, breaking into a cold sweat, "when did you-"_

"_Right at the start," Kisame told him, "the moment you looked into Itachi-san's Sharingan, you were trapped in his illusion."_

"_Correct," said Sasori. "Maybe you're not that blind after all." Deidara closed his eyes in dissapointment, and then opened them slowly. Itachi was staring at him with those amaing eyes, and suddenly, Deidara felt very, very small. _

"_This," he muttered to himself, "is true art." _

_Soon, he snapped back to his whiny, cocky self. "Hmph", he muttered, "that was pathetic!" he shouted grabbing his face. "I refuse..I refuse to call that art!"_

"_It does not matter what you percive art to be," Itachi calmly told him, "art or no, you lose." _

_Deidara watched the sunset that evening in freaks clothes, surrounded by idiots. _


	4. Lost in Blue

The next week was dull. Nothing but walking and thinking for the pair. Finally, they reached the desert in the Counrty of Wind. Sunagakure loomed far in the distance.

"You'd have to be mental to try to get through that places defences," Kisame whistled slowly.

"Bet I could, hmm," responded Deidara.

"Well," Kisame said calmly, "I doubt you'll ever have to."

The heat got worse as the sun went higher in the sky. Kisame was taking it especially bad. "Need…water…," he breathed slowly

"Yeah, yeah, we're all thirsty you whiny-ass," spat Deidara. Kisame did need water. His body was made for the steady, rainy climate of Kirigakure.

"No Deidara, I can't do this…I just…can't…can-…o…th-" The towering man fell down unconsious into the sand.

"_Don't look at him," he heard the mother say as she ushered her boy away from Kisame. He was nine, and used to this this treatment. _

_Did they think that he couldn't hear them talk about him? Or were they just to rude to care? The crowded streetes seemed to make room for Ksiame, who was already around 5'5. Not a single person breathed on him, not an elbow touched him. _

_A small toddler lumbered next to him, bumping him. "Hello, mista!" he cried, showing a toothy grin._

"_Hello there," Kisame smiled, croutching down. He had always loved children. _

"_NO!!" screamed a man, and pracitcally dove over his boy, sheileding him from Kisame's sharp-toothed smile. The man stood up fuming. "Stay away from my boy, you hear!" Kisame guililty pulled down his hood over his beautiful blue eyes and kept walking. _

_Eventually, he rached the town square, a market full of small caravans. People were lined all about, trying to sell and buy goods. The market was shieled by buildings on three sides and the ocean on one._

_Kisame noticed the ocean was awfully rought today, tossing white foam high into the air, sending waves tumbling against the rocky shore. Going in that water would be suicidal. _

_He slowly trudged up to a fishermans caravan. Kisame pulled a large bucket of anchovies out of his tattered black outfit. Slamming it down on the fisherman's counter, he looked grimly at the man._

"_3,000 anchovies, I need 770 ryo." Kisame's family was from a long chain of fisherman. It just made the rumors worse._

"_They offered him their son after they stolem the fish from the ocean," he had heard people say. _

"_He tried to gore a shark who stole his lunch, and the gods puished him." _

_He wanted to spin around an scream, "EVER HEARD OF BLOODY GENETICS!" _

"_Very well," smiled the fisherman, "a reasonable price from a reasonable family. There you are, son." Kisame smiled weakly. Ivanu was a family friend, and a good one. _

"_HELP!" shreiked a voice from the crowd. "HELP! THAT'S MY SON!" Kisame whipped around to see the boy who had greeted him bobbing in the ocean, about to be swallowed into the dark depths._

_He dived full speed, streaming into the water. Seeing the boy about ten feet aboive him, he exploded upwards, grabbing him in his muscular arms, and blasting up onto the market over the rocks. Kisame wasn't good at much, but he was a great swimmer._

_He pulled the hood over his face and brought the child to his father, who was sobbing in relief._

"_Thank you," he cried, "thank you! Thank y-"He stopped immedioatley. They whole crowd watched as he pulled Kisame's hood up, and began to shake with fury. _

"_You bastard," he whispered before exploding, "HOW DARE YOU TOUCH MY SON, YOU FREAK! FUCK YOU!"_

_Kisame sprinted full speed away from the market that day, leaving his ryo behind on accident. He was glad it was raining, so nobody tocied the hot tears running down his face. _


	5. Mortagai's Sin

Kisame slowly woke up, to find he wasn't in the desert. He was still lying on sand, but surrounding him were towering palm trees, with bromeliads spawing from their branches. A rainforest. He sat up slowly.

"Deidara?" he called quietly. Deidara? DEIDARA!" he shouted, but there was no answer. He couldn't see the sun because of the towering trees, but it was still hot. His tongue was burning, so he dedcided to look for water. There had to be something making these trees grow.

"_How the hell?" he wondered. "Where am I? How long was I out? And where the hell is Deidara?"_

He gently pulled Samehada, his giant sword, out of the ground, and walked further into the dark forest. Why was he having these dreams lately? He had tried to forget that day for so long, but was never able to.

"Deidara!" he called again, after taking a drink out of a small, clear creek, but rather weakly. He couldn't seem to explain it, but he knew Deidara was gone. Not dead, but definetly gone.

The sand floor was cool, and felt good on Kisame's feet. He had removed his sandals, finding it much more comfortable without them.

He hoped desperately that Deidara's clay bird would remain active even if he was in a desperate situation. Zabuza neededthat letter. It was very important.

It burned Kisame's heart to think that his most loved person was in mortal danger. Not Zabuza. Not Deidara. Not himself.

He walked on for what seemed like days, and very well could have been. Time itself seemed to be unexistent in the dark forest.

Eventually, when his buff body could go no further, he carved a hollow in a giant tree with Samehada. It was raining again. Was it Pain's rain? Or just tropical weather? After lighting a small fire, he drited off to another dream.

_Kisame burst open the door, still crying. He had run all the way home, about five miles. He wanted to lock himself up in his room, to never speak again. But he had no room. His house was a one-room seaside cabin. That's what his step-father called it. Kisame called it a shack with a dock. One room, a small matress on the floor, a creaky wooden table, and a rusty sink filled with chippe, wooden bowls. Ain't life grand?_

"_Mom!" he cried, "mom, I-"_

"_What is it?" came a voice. It was his step-fathers. He was huddled in the far corner, wrapped in moth-eaten blankets, smoking a cigar. Kisame hated his step- father. He was proud to be his mother's son, and glad not to be Mortigai's._

"_Where...where…is my mother!" Kisame shouted. He was only nine but incredibly intelligent. He felt something was wrong upon entry. He didn't feel the warm aura that surrounded his beautiful mother, or smell the freshly chopped herbs she seasoned the fish with every night. He knew the answer to the question already._

"Your mother," Mortigai grinned, "is dead."


	6. A Baby in the Crimson Tide

_The tears stopped instantly. He wouldn't shed them in front of Mortagai, in front of a murderer. He slowly walked over to the man, and pulled out a large cutting knife._

"_Where…the…hell…is…my…mother?" his voice was so quiet, so calm, that Mortagai's grin only got bigger. _

"_My, my, my! Dear boy, you must learn how to threaten! You can not get through times like these with a grin and hope." This was partially true. Kirigakure was in a state of civil war. It was a very dark time. _

"_Really?" Kisame said, just as quietly, "How's this?" There was a terrible scream as Mortagai lost vision in his right eyes with a sickening purp! Dark, crimson blood ran down his face. _

"_Damn you, mutant! Your mother is dead, there is nobody here to protect you!" He lunged at Kisame, seizing him around the neck and forcing them both through the decaying, flimsy wall of the shack. _

_The rolled down the rocky beach, landing in the salty water. Mortagai stood up instantly. Yeah, stood. On water. Kisame opened his mouth in disbelief. "That's right, you fucking twerp. I'm a shinobi." _

_Kisame gulped. He could chuck down a small bird with a pebble, and he could defend himself from an angry seal with a knife. But against a ninja, even a Genin, he was in deep trouble. _

_He treaded water, praying for his time to come quickly. Mortagai walked closer, step by agonizing step. _

"_Why'd you kill my mother?" Kisame roared. He refused to die a coward. He would remain loyal to her till the very end. Plus Mortagai had killed two people that day. Kisame's mother, and the nine-month old baby in side her, due any day. Kisame had hoped it would be a girl. _

"Your mother," Mortagai spat, "was no sweet, innocent girl. She may be only twenty-one, but she's a highly dangerous criminal. The government sent Genin after Genin at her. You, even with that thick skull of yours, must surely realize the government has not the power or numbers to waste Chunin or Jonin. Sure enough, your mother was able to defeat all of them."

This made sense to Kisame. The nights where she didn't return till almost dawn. The scars. The blood. The lies she fed him. Kisame's mother had been an amazing person. Beautiful, although short, she had brilliant eyes and long, seductive hair.

The fisherman always wolf-whistled when she walked by. Kisame always held out his tongue in disgust. Yuck! Girls? The only girls he'd ever love were his mom, and (hopefully) little sister.

"But alas!" Mortagai continued, "The Mizukage had another plan. Ah, Mizukage-sama is indeed a brilliant man." He seemed to be lost in his own thoughts, staring up at the cloudy sky as rain gently fell. The ocean was flat as a board now. It was then, that Kisame realized how ugly Mortagai was. He was a short, skinny man, who seemed to be grungy even after he bathed (which Kisame's mother had always claimed that he did) although Kisame highly doubted the fact. His face was oily and stubbly, and his long, greasy black hair was tucked in a long, bushy ponytail. His clothes were scruffy, and he often wore a hood to hide his black, beady eyes and crooked nose that had obviously been broken several times. Then there were those damn cigars he chewed on, that made the whole shack reek of smoke.

"Mizukage suggested that a Genin seduce your mother, a charming, witty Genin with devilishly good looks."

"He obviously wasn't wearing his glasses that day." Kisame spat. Mortagai stared venomously at the boy, with a look of utter disgust on his face. How had mom ever loved that man! He smoked, he drank, and he gambled! And those days Kisame had come home early from fishing to find the mattress bouncing under the weight of Mortagai and some trampy looking fisherman's daughter. Kisame had threatened the man to tell his mother. He still had the bruises for it. Yes, the last three years since that grease-ball came into his life were not his better ones.

"You cheeky bastard," Mortagai shot. "I was going to finish you off quickly, like I did your mother, and your brother! But now you're gonna go nice and slow!" He kicked Kisame in the jaw.

"I'm not going anywhere, you ass!" He sunk his dagger-sharp into the man's muddy leg, and effectively ripped of a chunk of flesh. The water around him became vividly red. Mortagai stumbled and fell into the water. He was obviously a Genin; his chakra control was atrocious. Kisame swam away rapidly as a now unconscious Mortagai sank deep into the dark ocean depths.

"Wait a second," he thought, "how did he know the baby was a boy?" Bump! Kisame hit a carcass in the water. His eyes were too filled with seawater to see what it was, but he grasped onto it, hoping it would be a dolphin or some creature that could serve has dinner for several days, so he could mourn instead of fish.

When Kisame came out of the water, his he threw the light body on the land and stuck his knife into it while he lay down on the rocks, waiting for his eyes to clear. The carcass smelled terrible. His eyes finally cleared, and he gasped as he looked. His mothers body lay next to him, a cutting knife thrust through her heart. She had bites all over her that blood still seeped out of. Some of her limbs and organs were already eaten away. On sad, begin, grayed blue eyes stared at him. He cried.

Most likely, Kisame theorized, Mortagai poisoned her, and then threw her out to sea, where she was feasted on.

Her uterus hung out of his mutilated corpse, but it was limp and empty. Had the baby been eaten? Or born? While he asked, a small lump rolled out from under his mother's tattered, black hood. A baby. A tiny, naked, baby boy. A small, shallow slash was across his chest, as if Mortagai had just toyed with him before throwing him out to drown, finding pleasure in the newborns screams. Kisame felt as if he would hurl. He was about to walk away in disgust when he heard a muffled cry. He whipped around faster then a clay falcon. The pale, weak baby was crying. His brother was crying.

He ran over and cradled the baby in his powerful arms. His, Mortagai's and his mother's blood had died the water crimson. He slowly cried as he stoked the baby's head, trying to calm it. "There, there," whispered, hugging the baby firmly but gently. "I'll always protect you," he whispered, hugging closer as he though for the perfect name.

"You'll always be safe with me, Haku."


	7. A Stepdad as a Sensei

"DEIDARA!" Kisame had not slept in two days. The humid forest had him sweating out of his already moist skin. His neck was awkwardly sore, and the soles of his feet burned, covered with cut and bruises from rocks hidden in the sand. The verdant, sun-filtered trees were gone. They had gradually been replaced with ancient, behemoth trees. The sun was filtered out, leaving it very dark. The joyous birdcalls and smooth, clear streams had been replaced with am eerie silence, broken only by the occasional drip! of water.

The dreams made him ignore his ailments. Haku. Was he still alive? Had Zabuza gotten the letter? And was Zabuza still alive? Kisame counted the people important in his life. "Mom's gone," he whispered softly, "Dad is…"

Where was his dad? He'd never really had one he supposed, but was that blue man still alive out there? Or had he been butchered in Kirigakure's civil wars. There was a good chance of that. "Maybe he just put himself off," Kisame thought. He couldn't of blamed it. He wouldn't lie. Those nights when mom was out 'playing ninja', his long, fish-cleaning blade had always tempted him.

"Dad is dead," he decided. He was feeling pessimistic. "Haku could be dead. Zabuza could be dead. Deidara could be-" Kisame stopped himself.

Deidara? Why had Deidara entered the list of Kisame's important people? Kisame had promised himself before joining Akatsuki to not make new bonds. They hurt too much when they were broken. And they almost always broke in one-way or another. But Deidara was the only member of Akatsuki with a none-leaden heart. True, he did have that odd thrill for his 'art', but he'd said himself that he didn't do it to kill people. He'd just been hired for that.

At least he wasn't like Pain, Konan, or Zetsu, the ones who seemed to have no emotion. Or Sasori and Itachi, the family-slaying duo. Or Kakuzu, the violent, greedy bastard. Tobi had sense of humor. But Tobi was a moron.

His thoughts slowly trailed off in the dark forest.

Thousands of miles away, where the rain was gone, replaced by a rising sun and dewy grass, a clay-falcon sat on a windowsill, waiting to deliver. It pecked impatiently at the window. Finally, it opened. A muscular man peered through, with short, brown hair and a mask covering the bottom half of his face. A giant sword was at his side.

"The falcon has a letter. It could be a trap. What do you think?" At first, it sounded as if he was talking to himself, but a small voice answered him.

"I think not, master."

"You'd better be right," he grunted, trying to sound rough. But he knew the letter was for him, that he was in no danger. He had simply been testing his 'tool'. He had passed the test. As usual.

Zabuza unrolled the letter. The ink words were smudged, from exposure to the rain. But the message was still understandable. He tucked it into his pocket.

The flacon flew high into the sky and exploded, while Zabuza turned to his assistant.

"Are you almost ready?" He wished he could be nice to this boy, but a promise was a promise. Kisame had taught him that long ago.

"Yes, master." He put his mask on; he was ready for anything. Such a beautiful boy. Zabuza was by no means attracted to Haku, but it would be a lie to say his features were not captivating. His parents had been the same, though.

"But wait!" Kisame had shouted that one night years ago! I know my mother is my brother's as well, but isn't Mortagai his father!? He has to be!"

Zabuza (along with the other two) had laughed. "Mortagai?" Zabuza had chuckled. "Your mother wouldn't have let the bastard lay a greasy hand on her, much less his 'private spots.' There's a lot you don't know about your mom, kid."

"That makes no sense!" spat Kisame. "Then who the hell was his father! And when did my mom get pregnant!"

The trio exploded in laughter. The tall man walked forward, and extended a long, pale, and graceful hand. His eyes danced with beautiful light, and his hands were cold. But not slimy like Mortagai's. More like a beautiful creation of ice.

"Hello," said the man, "You can call me Rain-sensei. Or your step dad. Either would be accurate." Kisame was speechless.


	8. Kakashi the Fox

The day passed silently, like it always did. Zabuza, though large and bulky, went gracefully through the sunny forest. His sword rested calmly on his shoulder. Haku trailed behind him, as silent as a shadow, keeping an eye out for any who might try to attack his master.

Lately, Haku had been having bad feelings. About his family. Zabuza had always taught him that families and friends just tied you down, but Haku didn't know. He remembered his parents fondly, well, at least his mother. The fact that his father had killed his mother, and that he'd killed his father, made the whole father-son relationship a little tense.

But after a few years on the street, Haku had gotten a new family. A new father. Zabuza. And something he'd never had before. Brothers! Gozu and Meizu were like older brothers to him. It always scared him, though, how quickly they turned from there normal, joking selves to the Demon Brothers. They were scary as demons, alright.

Zabuza and Haku had found the Demon Brothers in a small, rainy alley of Kirigakure. They were both bleeding heavily. Zabuza and Haku had been able to nurse them back to health (well, Haku did most of the nursing). They had been Chunin, left for dead after a small outbreak in the town. Kirigakure's state of civil war was gone, but it was still in terrible shape.

But they had been sent off several days ago to dispose of what Zabuza had called "a potentially troublesome group of rats".

"If they are rats," Meizu had asked, "why are you worried?"

"Because," Zabuza replied, "even rats are dangerous under the instruction of a fox. And also, Gato has asked."

"Gato!" Gozu had laughed. "The two-foot tall one! When did we start taking orders from him!"

"You don't take orders from Gato. You take orders from me. And the short little bastard happens to be putting money in our pockets if you do this job nicely."

Gozu and Meizu had always asked questions. Haku just followed his orders, a perfect tool to the man he owed his life to, several times over.

But now, the family was broken up again His two brothers were gone, and could very well be dead.

And his "father" was off. True, he still talked very little, and always in the same, gruff tone, but he seemed worried. The way he frantically whipped around at every noise today made Haku know he was. Was it the contents of that mysterious letter that had him nervous? Or was it this so called "fox"? Either way, it did not please Haku to see his master in such distress.

Around midday, Zabuza stopped instantly, and brought his sword into an attacking position.

"The fox?" Haku asked, beside his usual self.

Zabuza nodded. "Indeed, it sounds like his voice, anyway." He leapt into the air, and thrust his blade into a tree. Then, he climbed onto the hilt and perched silently.

He then made several quick hand symbols, and a white rabbit materialized next to him. Zabuza smiled under his mask. Just as he'd suspected. Hatake Kakashi. Zabuza had no clue where his special eyes came from, and he didn't care. All he knew is that his body had gone to long without killing, and that Kisame's letter had said nothing about Kakashi's death.

Far away, Kisame was still going. His energy was running on low. He'd have to stop soon. But stop meant sleep. And sleep meant dreams. And dreams meant memories that were painful enough to see once, let alone twice.

His eyes drooped. Was it possible to fall asleep while walking? He hoped not. As his eyelids grew heavy, he heard a small rustle in the dark brush behind him. Normally, he would have whipped around, but he just couldn't find the strength.

"Prol'y jus' a squirrel," he drooled. Out of the bush, came a sharp whizzing sound, and a small dart hit the ninja in the neck. A trickle of blood dripped onto the red clouds of his cloak. And suddenly, everything got very, very dark. Consciousness was gone.


	9. Daddy Mizukage

Kisame wrapped the crying baby's sliced chest with cloth, and then tucked him tightly into the blanket. His mind was racing.

What now? There was no way he could pay the taxes of this place, even if it was a shit-hole. There are a lot of fish in the sea, but he couldn't catch enough on his own. While taking care of his half-brother. And how did he do that?

Milk? Babies drink milk, don't they? Did they have any milk? He hurried over to the cupboard above the sink. A tear began to stream down his cheek as his mother's lovely scent wafted out as he pulled the flimsy counter door open. But he pushed it back. He didn't have time to cry. Not yet anyway. There was no milk.

Maybe he could beg for mercy from the government. The Mizukage might give him some support. He was, after all, a very wealthy man. But would he be able to beg for mercy, from the very man who ordered the death of his mother?

The immediate answer was no, but after seeing Haku fall gently asleep, his stomach rumbled. It may be hard, but he couldn't let his pride stop him, let it jeopardize his little brother. He let Haku sleep on, while he packed all of his belongings. A small black sack slung over his back contained clothes and food (which was all cooked fish). He'd probably have to smash it up for Haku. Don't babies like smashed food? Or did the salmon like smashed food? He couldn't remember. Kisame was a decent fisherman, but knew nothing about babies.

He set off into the rain the next morning. The Mizukage's palace wasn't far away. Yep. Palace.

The Mizukage was rich. Unbelievably wealthy. His building was gigantic, made off all white marble. Sparkling, pure water streamed through the building in channels seemingly woven into the marble walls. Even inside, it sounded like it was raining, due to the constant movement of water.

It took about six hours to walk to the palace. The last mile had taken nearly two of those, as the streets surrounding it were so crowded. Plus, he had to be careful that Haku was in a completely safe position, so somebody didn't bump his frail body.

Kisame, with his size, was eventually able to shove through the throng. He walked up the steps into the palace. A grand, jewel studded stone door was tucked behind two towering pillars. Kisame reached out for the door, but was blocked by two, brown-bearded men in blue mantles. They wore sunglasses and black jeans. Their two spears made an impassable 'X'.

"Aw," Kisame cried in frustratation. His feet were sore. He hoped he'd never have to walk for days at a time again, "just let me in!" Haku began to wail; his brother's shouts had brought him out of his nap.

"State your purpose," said the man on Kisame's left. He continued to look forward, as if Kisame was not worth looking at. Kisame couldn't decide if this was better or worse then being stared at and analyzed.

"I need to talk to the Mizukage!" Kisame screamed. Haku joined him.

"The Mizukage is only seeing urgent requests at the time," said the man on the right, over Haku's high-pitched shriek. "You may sign-up for an appointment with him at his side office, about twenty minutes from here."

"This is urgent!" Kisame hissed. The men lowered their spears.

"You may want to leave now," warned the one on the left. Kisame turned, but then stopped. These were the men who had tried to kill his mother. They were no different then Mortagai. Pictures of his mother lying bleeding on the rock next to him flashed through his head. He began to shake in fury.

"Faster!" the one on the right shot nastily. Kisame whipped around, sliding his thin cutting knife through the mans ribs. The man blubbered some foreign gibberish before collapsing dead on the ground.

The man on the left was to shocked to say anything. He managed to scream "security!" once into his earpiece before he too was hacked down by Kisame's knife. A slam from Kisame's shoulder sent the locked door bursting open.

He broke into a sprint, trying to stay off the main blue carpet running down the white tile floor and staying in the cover of the small water channel's and potted plants lining the walls. He had to be careful now. There would be more brutes coming, like the ones outside. But that's not why Kisame was nervous. It was shinobi he was worried about. The Mizukage was sure to have an elite force of Jonin protecting him. Scary really, seeing as Kisame would have immense trouble taking out a Genin.

He turned down a hall, then left, then right. "This way!" roared a guard, his voice echoing around the corner. Kisame dived behind a sculpture of the fifth Mizukage. Since the country was in civil war, they went through lots of them. The current was the twenty-ninth.

A group of men stumbled past, but didn't see Kisame. He was thankful that Haku had fallen asleep again. How does one fall asleep in such a situation?

He continued to run, until he reached a large door, which he through open. And he was instantly in a large, white marble room. It was marble, as most of the palace was. The ceiling was very high, with large, blue-flame chandeliers hanging down. Ornate stain-glass windows covered the walls, but little light came through them. They depicted Kirigakure's history; most of the images were not happy depictions. A long, blue carpet ran the length of the room, all the way up to an elevated throne, about a foot of the ground. The throne was white marble, padded with dark blue cushions. And Behind the throne was a ledge, blocking the throne from a gaping rectangle that a waterfall from the ceiling was pouring into. The water disappeared into an abyss of untold depths.

But Kisame was not looking at what was behind the throne. He was looking at what was on it. The Mizukage had deep, blue eyes, and dark hair. His long robes fell the length of his tall, muscular body, and his face was quite stern. Kisame could of cared less about these features, however. He was much more intrigued, well, dumbstruck really, about the color of the Mizukage's skin. Blue.

He was conscious again, but he kept his eyes shut. This made no sense. Like he had previously thought, his father had been the only blue person he'd ever seen. The Mizukage he remembered seeing in the real memory was always short, and with chestnut brown hair. Young, too. But then it hit him. Why the hell hadn't Rain-sensei said something? He probably hadn't known. Nobody had. His past made a lot more sense now that his dream had revealed the truth. The Mizukage had always bragged about his appearance changing jutsus, and turning into that short, young man had probably been easy.

"You sure were a tricky bastard, dad," he said out loud.

"Oh shit," came Deidara's voice. "I was hoping that when you came back you'd be sane, unlike our new friend down here." Kisame opened his eyes, but still saw nothing. The room was pitch black. He had a horrible feeling of vertigo.

"We're hanging upside down, by the way," Deidara said. "By shackles. Pleasant, hmm?"

"You dare insult the punishment of Jashin!" hissed a nasty voice.

"Hey," Deidara muttered, "it looks to me like this 'Jashin' is pissed at you for some reason to, Hidan."

"Hidan?" asked Kisame.

"Yep," Deidara said, "from what I've heard, I think it means 'loony' in some foreign language."

"You will both be punished!" Hidan cried. "You have not received the gift of immortality as I have! You are doomed to burn in Jashin's hell for all eternity!"

"Yeah, Deidara," Kisame sighed. "Definitely loony."


	10. Declined by the Throne

"Well, now what?" Kisame asked.

"We wait, I suppose. Useless chit-chat will just waste our energy, hmm." So they waited. Kisame closed his eyes, although he really didn't have to, and tried to sleep. You may think it would be hard to sleep upside down, and certainly not comfortable, but it wasn't the first time Kisame had done it.

It took several moments to speak, because of the awesome sight he was beholding. This room was built with wealth like he'd never imagined. The Mizukage wasn't blue now. He was his normal (fake) pale self.

But when Kisame opened his mouth, he found it was tied shut. A metal string was wrapped around his jaw, to thin to see, but enough to make him bleed if he struggled. He couldn't talk, either.

"Heheh," came a general chuckle from around the Mizukage. A group of (Kisame counted) exactly twenty-nine Jonin surrounded the throne. They were clad in long blue mantles, and thick, blue pants. A mysterious black mask was plasted over all of their faces, with only the eye area showing. They all wielded weapons. The Mizukage had an interested look on his face.

"Imbecile," smiled one, "a not-even-Genin trying to infiltrate the palace? Ha!"

"Don't be so kind with him," said another. He paused and approached him, seeming to be the leader of the bunch. He leaned down, and blew a soft breath into Kisame's nose. His teeth must have been sparkling, because his breath smelled like the most heavenly mint.

"You," he began, "are a fucking moron. How exactly did you plan to assassinate the Mizukage in his own palace?" He cut the string around Kisame's neck, allowing him to talk.

"I didn't want to harm him! I needed his help!" They all burst out laughing.

"Mmhmm," one of them cackled, "that's exactly what the assassin of the twenty-second said! And you expect us to believe you?"

"Do I look like a killer to you!" Kisame roared, his blood boiling. All he wanted was for him to be safe. For Haku to be safe. "I'm freaking nine!"

"Hold your temper!" The leader spat.

"AND WHO'S GONNA FUCKIN STOP ME!"

"You'll stop now," the leader said, "when I tell you that we've already placed an exploding tag square on your ass."

Kisame tried not to look surprised, but he was pretty sure he failed. Damn! First these wires, and now an exploding tag? And all without him seeing? How elite were these guys!

"Even if the Ixiox was not here, the Mizukage could have you dead without more thena blink. You dare question his power?"

The Ixiox? What kind of name was that? Kisame thought. Why not just call yourself Mizukage Guard of something?

"Once again," Kisame breathed, trying to hold his temper, "I simply came because my mother died and I need help, money, anything."

"Nonsense," said the Mizukage blandly. Everybody fell silent.

"Your mother cannot be dead. She was an extremely powerful and cruel Jonin."

"And how would you know who I am?"

"How many blue people do you know? The Hoshigaki family is not hard to track, boy."

"I don't know if there are any," Kisame whispered, "do you?"

"Blue skins?" The Mizukage laughed. "Why of course I know one."

"Who!" Kisame called desperately.

"I cannot say," he answered, "all I may safely reveal is that we are very close. But let us stay on topic. As I said, your mother can't be dead. Mortagai could never kill her."

"Then why'd you send him after her, you bastard!" several of the Ixiox went to kill him for his rudeness, but with a finger snap the Mizukage imprisoned their limbs with water. It appeared from nowhere, and weaved around them, floating in midair.

"Do not harm the boy," he scolded, "the boy asks a fair question. So I will give a fair answer." He stared Kisame hard in the eyes. "Mortagai, as you know, was a scum bag. He was a vile creature, and by assigning him a task of such monumental weight, I figured he would be disposed of in a fitting way. Your mother is very well known for making men bleed to death after castrating them with her bare hands. Like I said, quite a cruel one, she is. Could probably fight me decently if she had to, and could easily dispose of these." He gestured to the Ixiox, who looked nervously at one another.

"But my mom is dead! Mortagai got her!" The Mizukage's smile faded a smudge.

"If you insist on lying, I will have to prove you wrong." His eyes stabbed into Kisame's head, seeming to painfully rip through every strand of memory he had.

The Mizukage left his mind frowning.

"How the hell'd you do that?" Kisame asked, rubbing his skull painfully. But the Mizukage did not seem amused by Kisame anymore. He seemed disgusted.

"Take him away at once," he ordered firmly.

"NO!" Kisame roared, as the Ixiox swarmed him, forcing him out of the room. "I NEED YOUR HELP!"

"I've seen your mind" the Mizukage called, "you're beyond help."

Kisame bellowed in fury as the doors began to shut, "YOU'RE GONNA DIE SOMEDAY, YOU FUCKING BASTARD!"

"Yes, and so will you," the Mizukage answered calmly, thinking of the woman he had assaulted all those years ago. "Such, it appears, is the nature of life."

He was still pondering this when Kisame was thrown face first into mud outside the palace; the pouring rain soaking his already drenched spirit. Haku began to cry.


	11. Archers in the Night

What now? His mother had left him. The Mizukage had declined him. The world had turned his back on him. All he had was Haku. It was then he made his decision. Pulling out his knife, he gently ran his soft blue fingers across the blade. A small bead of blood danced down his hand.

He stopped momentarily as Haku turned in his sleep. Maybe he had survived the ocean, but he would not survive solitude. No food, no drink, no love; Haku would die quickly without Kisame, especially in his current condition. But Kisame saw no other way.

As he lifted the knife to his chest, he heard two voices whispering outside.

"That's the one," a man barked.

"The shack? That's its house?"

"Yep. It killed Raoiki and Deru, and dishonored the Mizukage."

"Terrible crimes, simply terrible. For a while I felt sorry, it only being a child, but it deserves everything it's soon to get. If I would have spoken to the Mizukage in such a way, my mother would have cut my tongue out."

"Your mother would have rather been shoving her tongue down your pops throat then cutting off yours." Which left them bickering for several minutes. Kisame tucked the knife away as a strong stench of kerosene drifted through the hole still left from when he had had fought Mortagai.

Then, without warning, the cabin exploded in a blazing fury. The flames shot across the walls at blinding speeds, eating the wood as Kisame leapt up. He seized Haku and turned quickly, but the hole was already blocked by a wall of fire.

"Damn!" He turned, and took one last sniff of his mother's scent, took one last glance at the place his whole life had taken place, before charging right through the wall of fire.

He hit the rocky shore running, and began to sprint away. An arrow whizzed past his face, slicing his cheek. He whipped around to see the two men hot on his tail, each putting another arrow on their bows. More non-shinobi, thankfully. Kisame continued to run, but turn yet again as his cabin exploded, leaving a giant mushroom cloud as the smell of kerosene shot for miles across. It must've taken a dang lot of fluid to catch that wet shack on fire.

Two more arrows nearly missed him, and a third got him in the upper arm. He round a sharp corner, making a quick blast too the lighthouse that jutted out from the rocky outcropping. The light had not worked for years, and the lighthouse cast eerie shadows in the light of the explosion. He dove behind it as another arrow slammed him in the stomach. These idiots were damn good shooters. He hugged Haku tight as he stared down at the dark, forbidding ocean, nearly two hundred feet down. It was particularly violent tonight; as storm was obviously on the way. The waves were easily ten footers, their white caps slammed furiously against the rocks. As the two men rounded the corner, he looked up at the starry sky, and hoped that he'd see it again. And with a deep breath, he dived headfirst, straight down.


	12. Death Sentence

"Wake up!" A wheezy voice commanded. Kisame's eyes slowly lifted. A tiny, red light danced around the room, but after such a long time in darkness, his eyes burned from it.

"Wada hell?" Deidara yawned.

"My Jashin! Punish this scum on our life, this horrible smudge on the face of humanity, this-"

"SILENCE!" The wheezy voice rasped, cutting off Hidan's "prayer". "You to have sinned; you might as well be their…equal."

"NO!" Hidan bellowed. "Pairings with such horrible demons! The commands burn me!"

"Oh shut up, you fucking whiny-ass!" Deidara ordered. A terrible scream burst their eardrums as Hidan shrieked as if he was being tortured.

"ITI…LXJF…FDABZQ!" That's how Kisame would have described the noises that came from the wheezing one's throat if he had to, but there was really no way to describe the odd, gurgling and clicking sounds he had made. However, whatever he had said had made Hidan become silent.

"You four have sinned against the mighty Jashin. Two of you have betrayed us by daring to approach the Sacred Lands! One of you has crossed the teachings of Jashin for sheer greed! And one of you, mere soil of the Earth, has tried to steal the very essence of what the Earth is! Your sins are all punishable by death!"

"What the hell!" Kisame shouted. "You're going to kill us for going into your precious little 'Jashin' land! You conked us out and dragged us in!"

"It is the law of Jashin!" The voice spat.

"Sounds more like Ja-shit to me!" Deidara snapped back.

"There is no debating!" The voice sounded. "Tomorrow you will be sacrificed to the mighty Jashin! Maybe, if you spend your last day in prayer he will make your torture in the afterlife a little less painful."

"GO TO HELL!" Deidara roared.

"That you will!" The voice hissed. The light dimmed into nothingness, and the being seemingly disappeared into nothingness. Several moments later, a small, purple, flashing object appeared on the floor.

"What the f-" But a giant hissing noise silence Deidara. The hissing grew, like air being let out of a balloon. Kisame felt air blowing into his gills. He slowly breathed, and sensed he had breathed in something different then normal air. He did not ponder it, however. With the gas, was unconscious in minutes.

Kisame couldn't move. He felt horrible; his eyes were burning with salt. A light rain trickled over him. Using all the strength he could muster, he managed to drag a finger a few centimeters. What he was lying on felt like wet sand. It was.

A few calm breaths later, he could start to make out the dark, stormy sky. Were those palm-trees waving above him? He couldn't tell yet. The sand burned his arrow wounds, which to still hurt miserably.

Where was he? He'd never seen a sandy beach, just rocky ones. And how had he survived?

The rain began to increase, and he suddenly panicked. Haku!

"Haku!" He tried to shout, but couldn't. Where was he! He couldn't cry, but still felt awful. The likelihood that Haku had stayed in his unconscious grasp in a storm was nil. He'd probably drifted down into the ocean, to join his mother.

Kisame gasped as a cold hand grasped his shoulders. His was powerful yet calm, and definitely not Haku.

"Whoer oo? Kisame whispered.

"Shhhh," the voice coaxed. "You're gonna be okay." It was a nice voice.

Kisame felt himself being lifted onto some type of stretcher, but still couldn't see clearly enough to be sure.

"Poor thing," a beautiful, young voice breathed. He felt a soft, warm hand grace his cheek, and blushed slightly.

They began to move. "Whoer oo?" Kisame tried again.

"It doesn't matter right now," the strong voice would say. Kisame sensed a new presence coming to him at one of their rest stops.

"I wone u ell me oo oo are?" He asked.

"That's just the way things go around here. Especially with sensei." The voice was not kind, but somewhat understanding. It was from somebody Kisame's own age.

"You must know," it said, "that ninja are very careful about disclosing information. Seeing as I could kill you at any time, however, I deem you a safe person to tell. If you simply must know, my name is Momochi Zabuza."


End file.
